This is the journey of a man named Chris, who had dreams shared by many, yet lived experiences known by so few... 
There are many people in the world of Pokemon, who come in just as many varieties as these strange creatures. And you 
are about to discover, perhaps, one you may just consider the rarest of all...


Chapter 16 - Starving For Help...


As he made his way quickly through the forest thanks to Kirlia's guidance, he noticed her expression oddly turning from
serious and intent on catching up to the thief, to... Something more along the lines of... Perhaps guilty? Maybe... Sorry...?
It wasn't a happy expression to be sure, and as Chris looked at the ground, he noticed the trail Snivy left behind growing
fresher and fresher, up to the point where they looked as if it had just taken a step where he was. "Its slowing down
I think... And its tracks are looking worse and worse too... Like its stumbling and dragging its feet..." he said quietly,
slowing his pace to a steady walk now, looking around at the ground. "...Kind of looks as if its been falling too. It
looked pretty weak when it came out of the rucksack... Its probably not good for it to use so much energy..." he told
Kirlia as he squat down to look at the trails. "Thanks for the help Kirlia... Its not far from here for sure..." he
muttered, standing and continuing forward. He came to a point where the foot prints stopped and a trail, seeming as if
it had started dragging itself along the ground, appeared in their place.


"...Should be just past these bushes. A clearing is right on the other side..." he told Kirlia, putting a finger over
her mouth to signal her to remain silent, getting a nod in response. Slowly making his way along, he carefully pushed
his face through the large brush, seeing if it was indeed on the other side, and sure enough, there it was, sitting and
weakly trying to open the Pokeball, repeatedly tapping it against its head as its body shuddered from head to toe. "...What
is it... Tryng to do...?" he mumbled, tilting his head as the Pokemon started crying as it bonked the Pokeball on its
head over and over again, weakly trying to pull it open with its small hands and teeth. It eventually weakly stood up
and let itself fall forward onto the ground, swinging the Pokeball forward and hitting it on the ground with it. As it
lay clutching its stolen good, it started to let out loud yet raspy noises as it sobbed, and as Kirlia listened along
with Chris, she suddenly patted his shoulder she sat on, pointing towards the miserable Snivy, getting a nod from him
in response. He carefully pushed his way through the brush and stood in plain site, putting his hands in his pockets
while watching the small Pokemon start once again trying to bonk the Pokeball on its head and pull it open as it lay
on the ground.


"...Why do you want to open it so badly? What's the point of it...?" he guietly asked, walking up to Snivy and looking
down at it with a calm face, raising his eyebrow. It tried to push itself away from him, shivering all over as tears
continued streaming from its eyes, and it once again started bonking itself on the head with his Pokeball. "...All that
will do is make you hurt more than you already are. That is a special Pokeball... Sealed shut for a reason... And I
don't appreciate you trying to force it open. Something really special to me is inside there..." he calmly told Snivy,
squatting down and holding out his hand. "...It doesn't matter what you may be going through, its not alright to steal
from someone, no matter the reason. Especially when you never know what the value of something as simple of that may have
in the ehart of the person you stole it from..." he said as Kirlia faced towards the whimpering Snivy with a sad expression.
The small Pokemon shut its eyes and suddenly tried to throw it at him, only flopping it to the ground in his direction
instead. "...Sure are weak, aren't you? Thanks for giving it back... Even if you meant to hit me with it..." he told it
while picking his special keepsake up and looking it over. "Nothing a little tlc can't buff out... And it doesn't look
like it came open at all... Good..." he muttered, asking Kirlia to hold onto it for him, getting a nod in response.


"...Snivy should be right at home in these parts, with plenty of food to spare that suits their diet. Why did you let
yourself get in this kind of shape when you've got nourishment all over the place?" Chris asked, sitting down with the
small Pokemon as it kept its weary eyes focused on him. "To be so depressed... So run down like this... Who or what caused
these things...?" he asked, reaching out to touch the terrified Pokemon. In response, the Snivy reacted in fear and it
swat his hand with its tail, slightly cutting his hand in the process. "Tsssss... Asked for that one I guess..." he grumbled,
rubbing the cut and scowling. "...I got a feeling its more someone than something who made you this way, what do you
think kirlia...?" he asked facing her, getting a shrug then a slight nod in response. Looking back at Snivy, he saw it
was having a hard time breathing normally, trying to get up as its eyes seemed as if growing heavier and heavier. He
shook his head with a sigh, and after a moment, reached out to it and picked it up, standing as he wiped its eyes. The
nervous Pokemon didn't take too kindly to being picked up by a stranger however, and started wasting more of what little
energy it had flailing, thrashing its tail around and cutting his face several times as a result. He gave Kirlia a shout
to do the calm thing she did to him, and with a nod she grabbed its tail as it swat her in the face, suddenly making
Snivy freeze wide eyed before being put under into a slight daze.


"Thanks... I owe you one..." he told her, seeing she had the mark of the Snivy's tail across her face now from being
slapped for helping the Pokemon. "Ha ha... We better get your face taken care of so that doesn't swell up too... It
really gave you a good one..." he laughed, causing her to suddenly smack him for mocking her. "H... HEY!!! That's not
fair!! I can't dodge or react or anything with you on my shoulder!! No hitting!!" he growled, with Kirlia sticking out
her tongue in response. "I already have scratches all over my face too... Geez..." he grumbled, turning and walking
back into the woods with the dazed Snivy in his arm. He took the Pokeball back from Kirlia and let out a sigh, rubbing
it against his shirt to wipe away some of the dirt. "At least we got you back grandpa... Now we just gotta make sure
this fella' turns out alright..." he said to the Pokeball, glancing at Snivy as it groaned. He had to stop several times
to get a grasp on where he was, having to backtrack using his own footprints to find the trail where he left his stuff.
However, once he finally found his way back, he also discovered he never bothered to put his stuff away he had tossed
out all over the place, and with a sigh he took a few of the clothes and made a bed for Snivy, asking Kirlia to keep
it calm and be ready in case it suddenly started freaking out again. With a nod he sat her down next to it while he
cleaned up the area, packing his rucksack bit by bit.


"Man... We could have already been most way down the outside of the border if it wasn't for the... Detour..." he said
with a sigh, shaking his head as he put the last of his belongings neatly in the rucksack. "We could still make more
progress, but with that Snivy in the state its in... It wouldn't be too easy. And we can't leave it behind like that, its
close enough to... Well..." he paused, looking at his grandfathers Pokeball before setting it in the rucksack as well.
"Nevermind... We should do something about its weakness though before doing anything..." he told Kirlia, walking up to
the two and sitting down with them. "Its really messed up... I just don't get how it could be so dirty and thin living
in a forest like this with water and food all over the place..." Chris muttered, rubbing the back of his head. He didn't
like thinking the Snivy could be... Perhaps... Suicidal... And whenever it popped up in his head he quickly shook it away,
rubbing the exhausted Pokemon on the head as it still seemed to refuse to doze off completely, even with Kirlia's influence
keeping it in a relaxed state. "...Say Kirlia, that thing you did when you somehow showed me what happened to you before
we met... Can you do the same thing with other Pokemon...?" he asked, making her tilt her head and shrug in response.
She reached over to Snivy and tried to go inside its mind, but as soon as it felt her trying to do so it quickly shook
her hand away, weakly making noises as its head flopped back down onto the bed of clothing, panting as it slowly shook
its head in a way as if saying no in a strange way...


"Well... I'm not gonna try to learn anything you don't want me to know then... Be that way if ya want, it'll only make
it harder for me to understand you and help you out." Chris responded, crossing his arms while closing his eyes to think.
"We should feed it... But its so weak it would choke on most anything probably... And it needs a bath but using water
that's cold would probably shock it too much in its state and do more harm than good... And it could probably use some
disinfectant too... It looks beat up a bit..." he mumbled, sorting out a plan in his mind. "Well then... Guess I'll get to
work. It can't be helped..." he told Kirlia in a somber tone as he stood, looking down at Snivy as its dazed eyes followed
his movements. He went around rummaging through the brush surrounding them to find rocks, setting them in a circle and
setting a small about of tiny twigs and leaves in the middle, lighting a small fire. "That should be enough..." he muttered
as he took his two bottles of spring water and poured them into a pot, setting it down on the small sizzling fire to heat
up. He took out a rag and some disinfectant, setting the materials down near Snivy, and set off into the nearby woods,
picking materials to feed Snivy with.


"Lets see... Some of this... Ah... Those are good... Hmm... And... Touch of..." he muttered, picking at plants and crawling
on the ground gathering various ingredients as well. "Ohh... Mushrooms... Might be good... Then... Mrrmm... And..." he
continued to mutter, causing both Kirlia and Snivy to watch him with bewildered expressions. He finally came back out
after a few minutes with a shirt full of random vegetables and fruits, including some herbs. Going to the pot, he sat
down and took out a beater and a cup from his rucksack. "Better to be safe... So I'll just do a little of this... And
pour a bit of that... Then... Probably... Kay..." he mumbled, putting various things in the cup, then pouring a touch of
water in, and repeated this several times, with each cup of whatever he made being put in separate places on two different
plates. Once everything was finished, he picked up the pot with what water remained and sat it neext to Snivy, bringing
the two plates over as well with a spoon. "Alright then... Lets see if we can't get you fixed up..." he told the nervous
Pokemon as it tensed up the closer he got, holding onto its tail as it curled up. He slowly touched its head, causing it
to let out a quiet startled noise, and as he started softly rubbing it, Snivy relaxed ittle by little, eventually looking
up at him, although still shivering. He scooped his hands underneath it and carefully lifted it up. "There now... I'm
not gonna hurt ya... I made something special that should go down nice and easy..." Chris told it as he scooped some of
what he made into the spoon and held it up to Snivy's face, letting it smell the food.


Chris had actually gone through the trouble of thoroughly grinding and blending its food up, separating everything accordingly,
with the various fruits on one plate, and the herbs and vegetables on another so the tastes wouldn't mix. Snivy weakly
looked up at him in response, and Chris gave him a smile. "Just eat... Alright?" and in response the Snivy looked back
at the spoon and slowly opened its mouth. "Atta' fella... Good..." he calmy replied, tipping the spoon against its mouth
so its contents would slowly flow inside. Snivy rolled the food around in its mouth for a moment before swallowing, letting
out a quiet yet happy sigh while rubbing its stomach. "Good... Good! Looks like you can manage this just fine the..."
Chris responded, giving it another spoonfull as Kirlia made her way up to him, holding onto his side and facing up. He
continued to quietly feed Snivy little by little, with its weary eyes slowly showing a slight spark of life deep within
them again as it ate, now relaxed and content as it was taken care of. Kirlia closed her eyes and leaned against Chris's
side, with her horns glowing dimly unbeknownst to him. With a smile, she absorbed his emotions into her mind, feeling his
tender heart... And as she absorbed what it was feeling in her mind, it was like a stream of honey bled from his heart
and oozed into her, making her heart flutter like butterflies in an open field under the sunlight. She couldn't help but
let out a happy and peaceful sigh, as while Chris fed Snivy with his hands, he was also feeding Kirlia with his heart
at the same time, making them both feel safer... Happier... And deep down... All the more full of life and warmth...


She suddenly gave him a hug, causing him to jolt and look down as he finally noticed her next to him. "K... Kirlia...?
Its hard to feed someone while another person is holding onto you ya know..." he told her with a slight blush, not sure
why she was suddenly being so affectionate towards him. She backed away, rubbing the back of her head with an embarrassed
laugh, sitting down beside him with a smile from ear to ear. He blinked at her confused, and with a shrug, finished feeding
Snivy. "There now... Two plates worth of food, down the hatch... You feel a little better...?" he asked, with Snivy looking
up with a dreary and sickly tone still covering its face. But it suddenly gave him a small smile, letting out a weak and
crackly sound in response. He gave Snivy a smile nonetheless and nodded. "Well... That's enough for me... Now lets get
you cleaned up..." he said, suddenly getting the rag and dipping it in the warm water left in the pot next to him. He
gently and soothingly cleaned it off, wiping clean every inch he could until its body looked nice and fresh again. However,
he could feel nearly every bone in its tiny body due to its malnourished state. He kept a smile on his face nonetheless
and held Snivy up in the air. "There... You look amazing now! All clean with a happy stomach... Feels good, huh?" he
asked, with Snivy looking down with a slight smile, letting out another quiet and raspy sound.


"Well... Now that you've eaten and had a bath, lets get those little injuries taken care of and see if we can't get you
to take a nap. We'll take good care of you while you rest..." he told Snivy, laying it back on top of the bed of clothes.
He took the disinfectant and some cotton and started tending to its body, causing it to sqeal in response weakly with
sudden tear filled eyes, squirming in pain as he burned its cuts and scrapes. "I know, I know... I promise its gonna
make you feel better. Just try to manage..." he told it as he asked Kirlia to drag his rucksack over, taking out bandage
rolls to wrap Snivy in. Once he was done, he pet it on the head until it stopped crying, with Snivy looking over its body
covered in bandages, feeling its full stomach and clean skin. Snivy looked up at Chris and slowly rested its head, its
eyes finally closing to rest as tears streamed while it allowed itself to seep at last, its trembling gradually subsiding
until it lay still, still breathing with some difficulty, but definitely better than before.


"...Hope we can find out what in the world happened to it Kirlia. This... Its just unbelievable... With the kind of place
its in around here, Pokemon like Snivy should be healthy and happy as can be..." he spoke in a quiet tone, rubbing her
on the head as he looked down at the sickly Pokemon now in his care. "Say... You kind of have a hobby when it comes to
singing... Huh Kirlia...? Think you could maybe give the fella a lullaby to sleep to...?" he asked, with her facing up
in surprise. Tilting her head, she made a sound as if to ask... "Lullaby...?" and he nodded. "Yeah... Something people
sing to make someone feel relaxed... Something that makes them sleep peacefully... Can you do that?" he responded, with
her smiling and nodding in response. Lifting her up and sitting her on his lap, Chris rubbed Kirlia's head as she started
making soft, sweet, and gentle noises in a melodic tone, slowly swaying from side to side on his lap while the Snivy's
tears slowly stopped and it began to show just the smallest smile as it rested before them.


"Thanks Kirlia... Good job..." he told her, hugging her and suddenly giving her a kiss on top of her head, doing so in
a strangely subconscious manner, looking back at Snivy without paying his action any mind. Kirlia's eyes were wide as
could be and her face seemed to glow red enough to burst, but she shook her head and kept singing, pushing it into the
back of her mind as he continued to hold her and rub her head as thanks.